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March 19, 2013

TD Ameritrade Grabs Ex-LPL Recruiter

Meanwhile, Wells Fargo says it has added 27 advisors this year, mainly from rival wirehouses, as Morgan Stanley brings in 3 from UBS

TD Ameritrade (AMTD) said early Tuesday that it named Scott Collins (left) as the head of its recruiting efforts for hybrid and fee-only RIAs. In addition, on Friday, Wells Fargo said that it had recruited more than 25 advisors from rivals with about $3.7 billion in assets and more than $10 million in yearly production.

Collins most recently worked for a consulting firm that focused on advisors moving to the independent channel. Before that, he was with LPL Financial (LPLA) for 13 years. He cut his teeth in the business as an advisor with Merrill Lynch (BAC).

“Scott is an industry authority and longtime advocate in helping advisors find the best solution for their businesses and clients,” said Pete Dorsey, managing director of sales, for TD Ameritrade Institutional, in a press release.

“As an experienced sales professional, consultant and former financial advisor, Scott brings a tremendous depth of knowledge and understanding of the advisor mindset and needs to the Advisor Transitions Team,” added Dorsey. “We’re thrilled to have him join us in our commitment to helping advisors through the decision-making process and making a smooth transition to independence.”

TD Ameritrade currently provides brokerage and custody services to more than 4,500 fee-based, independent RIAs and their clients.

Wells’ Latest Efforts

Wells Fargo Advisors has added more than 15 advisors to its traditional, employee-based channel with about $2.5 billion in assets and more than $10 million in trailing-12-month fees and commissions. It also added nine reps to its independent channel, the firm said Friday, with about $1.25 billion in assets and $7.4 million in recent production.

The latest recruiting efforts include 4 women, as well as 15 Morgan Stanley (MS) reps and 8 Merrill advisors, among others.

Joining WFA in Beverly Hills, Calif., for instance, is the Fields, Silver, Smith Group, which includes the advisors Geoffrey Silver, Sybil Fields and Adena Smith. They have a total of nearly 80 years of industry experience and join from Morgan Stanley with $950 million in assets and $2.1 million in production.

Among Wells FiNet recruits was a team from Merrill Lynch in Richmond, Va.: Heartwood Wealth Advisors, which includes Sid Martin, Steve Clarke and Wes Kaufman, who had assets of close to $690 million and yearly fees & commissions of $3.2 million.

Morgan Stanley’s Recruiting

As it sees a number of reps go out the door to rivals, Morgan Stanley is doing what it can to boost its numbers.

On March 5, it said that UBS reps Scott Sexton, Roxann Romano and Anthony Catalano had joined its operations in New York and Tennessee.

Sexton had about $1.04 million in prior yearly production and $173 million in assets. Roxann Romano and Anthony Catalano, for instance, had combined production of $1.74 million and prior assets of $123 million.